Now that North Korea is close to building an effective ICBM it's time to consider whether or not the North Korean government should remain in place. They are scheduling another nuclear test sometime probably soon. The country is becoming even more dangerous than it used to be when all it used to do is sink South Korean ships, blow up international airplanes, and send terrorists to kill country leaders.

Let's shoot it down.
When they get pissed off and threaten and complain just laugh at 'em.
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On a more serious note:

John Bolton: UN Threats Won't Stop North Korea

John Bolton appeared to scoff Wednesday at suggestions the United Nations would pursue a harder line toward North Korea in the aftermath of its successful rocket launch that for the first time put a satellite into wobbly orbit.

The launch Wednesday touched off speculation that North Korea, with help from Iran, was moving closer to developing an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of delivering a nuclear strike at the United States or any of its allies.

Bolton, the former United Nations ambassador under President George W. Bush, called it "a big deal," but told Fox News' Greta Van Susteren that U.N. Security Council threats of additional sanctions won't do any good.

The Security Council condemned the launch as a violation of previous sanctions imposed in 2006 and 2009 banning North Korean missile and nuclear tests.

"They obviously weren't deterred by the existing sanctions, and with good reason," Bolton said. "Every step North Korea takes closer to a true, deliverable nuclear weapons capability, the more they believe that the United States and other countries that are worried will come to try to negotiate with them.

"So it's not that their successes breed stronger reactions against what they are doing," he continued. "They think that the rest of the world will play into their hands, and for 20 years they have been right about that."

Bolton, pointing to Iran's efforts over the past 15 years to help North Korea develop its ballistic missile technology, dismissed Pyongyang's claim the launch was aimed only at putting an earth surveillance satellite into orbit.

"This has nothing to do with launching . . . weather or communications satellites, which is what both North Korea and Iran are saying," Bolton said, adding that the fact "they got something into orbit at all is noteworthy."

"South Korea, an incredibly prosperous society, has itself failed to orbit satellites," Bolton noted. "So for this impoverished, and the most heavily sanctioned regime on earth, [to do it] tells you about U.N. Security Council sanctions."

"It is a big deal, every step of the way," he added.

With the launch, North Korea joined a fairly exclusive club of only 10 nations that have put a satellite into orbit. The launch caused a stir even in China, a long-time ally of North Korea, which warned Pyongyang a month ago not to attempt it.

On Wednesday, the Chinese government said it "regrets" the launch, but gave no clear indication if it would support further actions by the United Nations.

Bolton said unless China takes a harder line, North Korea can be expected to continue with its efforts aimed at intimidating the United States.

"They have succeeded in that before. And China, which could bring enormous pressure on North Korea, gets away with issuing statements about regret," he told Van Susteren.

Very rare for me to side with a neocon like Bolton , but on this particular issue he's absolutely right. Its something I've also been saying for years.

Namely, the only way this (the NK) regime will ever go away is through outside force. The dictatorship is so absolute, the population so terrorized, the level of repression throughout the society so severe, that any chance of the NK govt being overthrown from the inside is next to zero. Thats the sad truth that is rarely spoken about or admitted.

They are and will continue on the present course because its simply not in their interest to do otherwise.

I'd say that there is one chance for things to sorta change from the inside and that is an internal faction dispute (possibly brought on by hunger- one of the very few things that could get the military wing to turn on the party/political/propaganda/intelligence wing) in which case you might get some warlordism going on. Not likely and not really desirable, but at least its possible.

Who knows? In such a scenario the regime might actually turn for outside help because they represent "stability" in terms of preventing some sort of massive humanitarian crisis.

I'd say that there is one chance for things to sorta change from the inside and that is an internal faction dispute (possibly brought on by hunger- one of the very few things that could get the military wing to turn on the party/political/propaganda/intelligence wing) in which case you might get some warlordism going on. Not likely and not really desirable, but at least its possible.

Not to denigrate your opinion but this is more wishful thinking than anything else. Actually it illustrates perfectly the point I was making. The above scenario HAS happened - during the '95-'98 famine. Between 2-3 million died, between 10-15% of the entire population. These statistics make it one of the worst, if not THE worst famine to happen in any country anywhere at any time. Apparently in some instances some Army factions did revolt but these insurgencies were mercilessly put down without too much difficulty according to defectors who witnessed these occurences. What was the regimes response to the areas worst hit by the famine?....simply to cut off and isolate them. Read the book 'Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick' for survivors first-hand accounts of the horror they witnessed.

except they got nukes, so you aren't going to hear about the US attacking it like Iran and other Middle Eastern countries.

Thats the point the OP was trying to make I think. What is to be done, if anything, now that such a regime has nuclear weapons (or at least a handful, if intelligence is to be believed). Wheres the point where the international community says enough is enough? Your right in one sense though, theres absolutely no way the US will intervene unilaterally anytime soon.